While regular pay growth has remained modest for most UK workers, generous bonuses at firms outside the financial sector have pushed bonuses above their previous pre-financial crisis peak. Almost all the total for last year – £43.7bn – was in the private sector with few bonuses in the public sector. Though the cash value of bonuses was a record last year, the peak year for bonuses as a proportion of total pay was in 2008, when they accounted for 7.1% compared with 6% last year. Theresa May should stick to her guns on executive pay and low pay alike Read moreIn the finance industry, bonuses peaked as a share of total pay in 2008 at 34%. In other sectors, bonuses were 4.5% of total pay last year – the highest level since the ONS started its calculations in 2000.

Source: The Guardian September 15, 2016 11:49 UTC